May 30, 2019

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Survey results released this week show growth in the number of working-age RVers who are needed to sustain the industry as older generations leave the road behind. 

Nearly 7,800 RV owners shared information about themselves and how they travel through a census taken by the Escapees RV Club from Nov. 30 to April 12. 

Almost half of those who responded, 43 percent, are younger than 65. A quarter of them work while traveling and 58 percent report working remotely at least part-time. Other industry research backs up the census data, indicating rapid growth in the number of working-age RVers, according to a news release from the Escapees RV Club. Industry experts attribute the rise in younger RVers to improvements in technology that allow people to stay connected while traveling.

Of the 57 percent of survey takers who are older than 65, 36 percent report they’ve been RVing for more than 15 years. 

Almost half of all census respondents, 48 percent, travel full-time and 25 percent are on the road part-time. Eleven percent travel seasonally or on weekends, 10 percent use their RVs for vacations and the rest take short-term trips, results show. 

Most respondents also travel often with 61 percent reporting they stay in one spot for fewer than two weeks. However, 40 percent of the RVers who responded cover 5,000 to 10,000 miles a year and 39 percent travel 1,000 to 5,000 miles annually. This likely indicates they make many stops closer together rather than long-distance trips. Just 15 percent of respondents travel more than 100,000 miles each year.

Many survey takers, 40 percent, spend more than half the year traveling outside of their home state. Another 36 percent stay out of state for three to six months of the year.

Most RVers surveyed, 38 percent, travel in Type A motorhomes while 28 percent call a fifth wheel their home on the road. Another 15 percent use travel trailers and 11 percent take their trips in a Type C motorhome.

Of census participants, 60 percent are men and 40 percent are women. Most, 76 percent, take trips with an opposite sex partner while 16 percent travel solo. Fifty-six percent bring pets, including dogs, cats, reptiles, hamsters, birds and sugar gliders along, while just 3 percent travel with children. 

The Escapees Club plans to use the census data in discussions of RV-related legislation, programs and services. The group also expects the information to help manufacturers and other businesses better meet the needs of RVers.

Those interested in discussing the results or advocacy concerns can email Escapees CEO Shawn Loring at sloring@escapees.com.

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Source: RV News - http://www.rvnews.com/article.php?id=9628